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DTSTART:20180101T000000
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20191010T120000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20191010T160000
DTSTAMP:20260611T151432
CREATED:20191017T125910Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210610T073915Z
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SUMMARY:CURA Workshop: The Art of Hearing and Seeing Data
DESCRIPTION:On October 10\, 2019\, CIRS hosted a CURA workshop titled\, “The Art of Hearing and Seeing Data: Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods\,” by Assistant Professor of Government at GU-Q\, Dr. Uday Chandra. The workshop provided participants with an insightful breakdown of the practical fundamentals of qualitative research and data observation. Ranging from freshmen to seniors\, the participants actively engaged with the material and discussions led by Prof. Chandra\, enabling them to build upon each other’s interpretations of the significance of plausible data across various forms of qualitative research. Through a simple ethnography-inspired observation exercise that students were required to complete prior to the workshop\, students were able to contextualize the role of hearing and seeing data at the most rudimentary level\, within the overarching theme of conducting qualitative research. As part of the discussion\, students compared the sights and sounds they observed in public spaces at various campuses\, in comparison with the audio-visual elements of the social atmosphere at the atrium in GU-Q itself\, and explored the interactions between independent variables such as academic concentrations and gender ratios.  \n \n \nThe workshop initially delved into the basics of quantitative and qualitative research\, emphasized that each method has shortcomings\, and can be used only to answer certain\, specific research questions. Recognizing the “seduction of quantification” and the difficulty of demonstrating causation\, not just correlation\, and to accurately reflect social reality\, enabled participants to contextualize the role of qualitative research methods within the wider framework of data observation. Prof. Chandra also highlighted the pitfalls of qualitative research in its inability to identify macro trends\, geospatial mapping of micro-level data\, establish patterns for large numbers of cases or variables\, or even solve existential problems. Students learned that different methodological approaches should be used to strengthen the certainty of their theses.  \n \n \nProf. Chandra used a personal example of his doctoral research titled\, “Negotiating Leviathan: State-making and Resistance in the Margins of Modern India\,” to demonstrate the practical workings of qualitative research. He shared his own experience in overcoming challenges pertaining to fieldwork. Salma Hassabou\, CURA Administrative Fellow and workshop participant\, commented\, “I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Prof. Chandra’s personal experience with qualitative research because much of what we study is mostly theoretical in nature that not everyone knows how to apply it in practical research. The example he shared regarding his fieldwork tied the entire workshop together\, and I found it incredibly helpful.” \n \n \nThe workshop also addressed concerns regarding the importance of credible research design and the need for a focused research question. The conversational nature of the workshop also allowed students to engage with the topic very closely and clarify areas of ambiguity within the spheres of both qualitative and quantitative research methods.  \n \n \nThe workshop had a total of twenty-four participants\, and the attendees who successfully completed all required tasks were awarded electronic badges to certify their enrollment and completion of this CURA workshop. CIRS hosts CURA workshops once every semester to encourage student research and to equip the GU-Q student body with the skills and practical knowledge needed to produce original research in the students’ respective fields of interest.  \n \n \n  \n \n \nArticle by Irene Promodh (class of 2021)\, CURA Research Fellow
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/cura-workshop-art-hearing-and-seeing-data-0/
CATEGORIES:Student Engagement
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20191027T090000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20191028T170000
DTSTAMP:20260611T151432
CREATED:20191125T115819Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210829T134846Z
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SUMMARY:Football in the Middle East Working Group I
DESCRIPTION:On October 27-28\, 2019\, the Center for International and Regional Studies held the inaugural working group for its research initiative on “Football in the Middle East.” The meeting brought together regional and international scholars and experts to discuss some of the understudied areas related to football in the region and to identify original research questions in their respective areas of focus. Over the course of two days a number of topics were discussed\, including\, football academies\, women’s football in Turkey\, the FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar\, beIN and sports broadcasting rights\, football management and administration\, football players’ perception of national identity\, football clubs in Iran\, Palestinian football players in Lebanon\, youth refugees and football\, football and regime legitimization\, and football fans and protests in Algeria. \n\nThe working group began with Dr. Valter Di Salvo’s talk on Qatar’s strategies to build a high-performance football environment. Dr. Di Salvo\, the Director of Football Performance and Science at Aspire Academy\, compared the football environment of three countries\, Spain\, England\, and Qatar\, and stressed that building a successful football environment in Qatar needed an understanding of the local social context. A seven-goal plan was implemented by Aspire to develop and strengthen the game in Qatar. This included\, data collection on a players’ performance and abilities; recruiting a professional group of staff and trainers; assessing the needs of coaches and players; formulating and implementing a training strategy; building of training facilities and assessment labs; integrating knowledge throughout the process; and finally sharing of knowledge with other partners for development of the game. The last goal led to the formation of the Aspire Fellows Community that presently has representation from 50 globally-renowned football clubs and federations and has 260 presentations in its database for knowledge sharing. \n\nBuilding on the discussion of Qatar’s football development strategy\, Dr. Wadih Ishaq spoke about Qatar’s hosting of the FIFA World Cup in 2022. Dr. Ishaq pointed out that while scholars and analysts have addressed football\, politics\, and socioeconomic issues\, there is little work that offers an internal perspective on the World Cup and its implications for Qatari society\, economy\, and culture. Among other topics\, it is important to study sports and education in Qatar\, and the long term educational opportunities and job security for athletes. \n\nSimon Chadwick spoke about the off-field management of football and highlighted a study by Jasoor Institute that measured the size of the sports economy in the Middle East. The study examined the broader sports landscape in the region and drew attention to major clubs and federations in the GCC member states. Chadwick suggested that in order to address the question of football management in the GCC\, five areas need to be studied; fan engagement\, investment\, sponsorship\, brands and branding\, and industrial networks. Professor Chadwick identified a number of core research questions: How can football in the GCC region establish and build sustainable match day attendances? What role in the development of football in the region should investment play? What purpose do the portfolios of GCC region football sponsors serve? Can football club brands in the GCC region ever rival those of their international rivals? How is football contributing to broader industrial challenges facing the GCC region? \n\nRoss Griffin explored the question of national identity and football players of the Qatari national team. The composition of the Qatari team contains a host of players born in countries such as Sudan\, Iraq\, Algeria\, France\, and Portugal. Their success as a national team presents the opportunity to revisit the complicated relationship between nationalism\, football\, and national identity from a player perspective. The identity dilemmas that inevitably ensue when athletes are naturalized has been given significant consideration by scholars of sport and nationalism. Financial gain\, cultural affinity\, and professional ambition have all been cited as motivating factors influencing an athlete’s decision to switch allegiances. Nevertheless\, the majority of these analyses have been undertaken with the construct of a team\, the fan\, or the nation in mind. Ross Griffin suggested that there is a need to include the subjective perspective of players themselves in their performance of national identity. \n\nJohn McManus stated that creating a strong legacy for the World Cup was an inherent component of Qatar’s bidding pitch. Training and development of sports administrators and industry experts are part of this legacy. McManus argued that the literature on sports administration often focuses on mega sporting events\, and there is very little attention given to other forms of organized sporting competitions. It was suggested that there is a need to examine Qatar’s wider sporting landscape and to look at organizations such as beIN\, Qatar Sports League\, and Aspire Academy and address their roles when it comes to sporting legacy building. Some of the research questions that were put forward included looking at expatriate games and their administrations; examining what it means to be a sports administrator; exploring the administration of football clubs and federations; What is an event gypsy?; as well as moving away from western-centric literature and focusing on the Middle East specific context. \n\nCraig LaMay drew attention to the beIN network and broadcasting rights in the Middle East. Pay television has changed the way people watch sports in the region\, and other broadcasters often view beIN’s monopoly over broadcasting rights as aggressive. The network has 40 percent of global media rights\, and these include copyrights and audio/visual rights over broadcasting. However\, the network is not just limited to sports channels but also has several entertainment stations. Sixty percent of the content produced is in Arabic\, and according to statistics\, 66 percent of total viewership over television for the FIFA 2018 World Cup was through beIN sports channels. An understudied area with regards to the beIN network is the entry of the beOUTQ network\, which is a pirate pay-television broadcaster and is an example of industrial level piracy of broadcasting. The network not only pirates channels from the beIN network but also channels from Europe and the US. Craig LaMay suggested the need to examine the nature of pay television and the issue of piracy in broadcasting and its implications for beIN in the long run. \n\nThe literature on sports gives examples of how sports can be used as a medium through which refugees can be integrated into the social and political fabric of a country. However\, this is not always the case\, as seen with Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. The Palestinians in Lebanon are a stateless people\, and the football federation in the country has put a cap on the number of Palestinian players that can play in a team. Each club team is allowed to have only one Palestinian player\, and they cannot play as a goalkeeper. Palestinian are also restricted from holding property in Lebanon as well as are banned from 30 professions\, which is another form of discrimination that they have to face. In response to these restrictions on joining Lebanese football clubs and teams\, Palestinians have formed their leagues under which they have formed teams and hold matches. Danyel Reiche’s presentation shed light on these issues and proposed four areas\, which could be studied in regards to Palestinian football players\, i.e.\, Palestinian diaspora clubs elsewhere\, Palestinian football in Israel\, the condition of Palestinians as stateless people in Lebanon and the efforts to gain statehood by recognition. Reiche’s focus would be to examine the cap on players\, when and why it was introduced\, and discrimination of Palestinian players in Lebanese football. \n\nMiddle Eastern rules have frequently used football as a tool for regime legitimization. While much of the literature on this focus on the soft power aspects of football\, Abdullah Al-Arian\, proposed that there is more to states’ instrumental usage of football than soft power and brand-building. Abdullah Al-Arian suggested that football is used by states to pursue and achieve hard political objectives. States have used football for extending neo-imperial control and power consolidation\, regime legitimization\, countering threats\, political repression\, and to mask unpopular regional and domestic policies or sports-washing. None of these forms of legitimization are mutually exclusive\, and states have used multiple of these at the same time. Furthermore\, emphasis in the literature has been on identifying policies related to the national teams and federations\, and not a lot has been written in regards to economic expansion and using clubs and ownership to explain some of these categories. \n\nMaher Mezahi\, detailed the history of football in Algeria\, with the arrival of the game in the country with colonial rule\, the formation of the first Algerian football club and the national team as a tool of protest against the colonizers and the subsequent use of football stadiums to protest against the political regime after independence. Football fans and club ultras express their political\, social\, and economic demands during matches in forms of songs that they produce and publically distribute. Mehar stated that the protesters who are currently rallying on the streets for regime change replicate the football fan behavior. They gather after Friday prayers\, at a famous square\, peacefully march around the town in Algiers\, sing songs that are produced by football fans\, and display anti-government calligraphy and tifos. The support from organized ultras and football fans has enabled the protesters\, to organize and execute street protests and overcome the fear of law keepers. \n\nRamon Spaaij brought the discussion back to football’s role in the development and inclusion of refugees with a focus on youth refugees. Spaaij expressed that there is a Eurocentric focus and bias on the research conducted on the topic and that there is a mismatch between research sites and the locations where the majority of the world’s displaced people reside\, with Turkey being the main exception. The reliance on policy categories limits academic research by constraining the type of questions asked\, the objects of study\, and the methods and analysis adopted. There is a need for research that uncritically accepts the boundaries of the field imposed by policy categories will tend to confirm and legitimize the assumptions made by actors. Some of research gaps that were identified included; over-emphasis on instrumental dimension vs experiential dimension of football\, decolonizing research\, ethical relationships in research\, looking at different innovative methods\, strengths-based approaches and reframing of refugees in terms of risk\, threat and deficiency and capturing the diverse voices of refugees regarding their own sporting aspirations\, needs and achievements as opposed to merely echoing dominant sport policy agendas. \n\nThe debate around gender issues and sports\, particularly football\, is a prevalent theme in the Middle East. The participants looked at female football players in Turkey for the following session. Yagmur Nuhrat identified three areas for further research on the topic; equality for women\, with focus on the dynamics of equality rather than justice; knowledge production and better education for female football players; and the issue of space and spatiality and how that relates to the environment of playing fields and neighborhoods. Some of the questions that were put forward were; Can we achieve equality\, and what kind of equality are we talking about when it comes to female football players? What are some of the elements of this struggle and resistance? What are the discourses when it comes to physical strength? How women’s’ empowerment is conceptualized by footballers and how they view this discourse? Female athletes may feel physically unsafe if they were not in a structured space. Even if it is exclusionary\, how does this structured space create feelings of safety for women? \n\nAlireza Farsi closed the working group meeting\, with his presentation on politics and football clubs in Iran. Farsi detailed the playing history of the Iranian national team and explained the structure of the football federation in Iran. Iranian federation has sixteen registered teams\, out of which only one is privately owned\, whereas the rest of the fifteen teams are owned and managed by the government. It was proposed that the football in Iran needs a component of social responsibility\, and the main driver behind should be the privatization of the clubs. Farsi gave an example of the income generated by the Premier League in England and stated that the privatization of the game could bring in economic and industrial growth as well as build up the private sector and cash revenues. The presentation also proposed strategies to initiate social responsibility and privatization plans\, which could be applied to various federations across the Middle East. \n\nIn conclusion\, Mehran Kamrava\, Director of CIRS\, thanked the participants for identifying key gaps in the literature on football in the Middle East. It is worth noting that the participants will contribute empirically grounded papers addressing these questions\, among others\, to be published in an edited volume under the auspices of CIRS. \n\nTo view the working group agenda\, click hereTo read the participants’ biographies\, click hereRead more about this research initiative\n\nParticipants and Discussants:  \n\nAhmed Abbasi\, Qatar Football Association\, QatarAbdullah Al-Arian\, Georgetown University in QatarNajwa Al-Thani\, Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy\, QatarMohammed Al-Thawadi\, Aspire Academy\, QatarZahra Babar\, CIRS – Georgetown University in QatarChaimaa Benkermi\, Georgetown University in QatarMisba Bhatti\, CIRS – Georgetown University in QatarSimon Chadwick\, emlyon Business School\, FranceValter Di Salvo\, Aspire Academy\, QatarAlireza Farsi\, Shahid Beheshty University\, IranRoss Griffin\, Qatar UniversitySalma Hassabou\, Georgetown University in QatarWadih Ishac\, Qatar UniversityMehran Kamrava\, CIRS – Georgetown University in QatarCraig LaMay\, Northwestern University in QatarJohn McManus\, Qatar UniversityMaher Mezahi\, Independent Football Journalist\, Algeria Suzi Mirgani\, CIRS – Georgetown University in QatarYagmur Nuhrat\, Istanbul Bilgi University\, TurkeyIrene Promodh\, Georgetown University in QatarAbdul Rehmaan Qayyum\, Georgetown University in QatarDanyel Reiche\, American University of BeirutKhushboo Shah\, Georgetown University in QatarRodney Sharkey\, Weill Cornell Medical College in QatarRamon Spaaij\, Victoria University\, Australia Betsi Stephen\, Georgetown UniversityElizabeth Wanucha\, CIRS – Georgetown University in Qatar\n\nArticle by Misba Bhatti\, Research Analyst at CIRS
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/football-middle-east-working-group-i/
CATEGORIES:Focused Discussions,Regional Studies
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20191028T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20191028T193000
DTSTAMP:20260611T151432
CREATED:20191020T064656Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210829T134837Z
UID:10001418-1572285600-1572291000@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Sport\, Politics\, and Society in the Middle East
DESCRIPTION:The Center for International and Regional Studies launched Sport\, Politics\, and Society in the Middle East at a CIRS Dialogue Series event on October 28\, 2019. The edited volume examines the role that sports have played in the contemporary socioeconomic\, cultural\, and political milieus of the region. Danyel Reiche\, Associate Professor for Comparative Politics at the American University of Beirut\, presented an overview of the CIRS research project and the book\, which he coedited with Tamir Sorek\, Professor of Sociology at the University of Florida. \n\nReiche began his talk by emphasizing the growing significance of sports in the Middle East\, notably in the midst of Qatar’s preparations for the FIFA 2022 World Cup. The increased attention on sports in the Middle East is reflected not only in the media\, he said\, but also in academia where a “growing body of scholarship\, particularly on Qatar\,” is shifting to sport studies. Reiche shared his observations of the close ties between the Middle East and the world of sports in the rising number of mega-sport events hosted in the region\, for example\, and in the sponsorship of European football clubs by Middle Eastern countries\, such as Paris Saint-Germain by Qatar and Manchester City by the United Arab Emirates. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\nThe project’s primary research questions considered the factors behind the establishment of sport in the Middle East\, whether there were common patterns and dynamics throughout the region\, the different roles of sport\, and whether sport is serving societal change. Reiche highlighted the uniqueness of the book in terms of the research process employed. Utilizing a range of interdisciplinary social science approaches\, the ten authors drew from ethnographic research\, academic literature\, archival work\, interviews\, and surveys. The chapters fall under two broad themes: the “politics and economics of sport” and sport as a “contested terrain where struggles over meaning\, resources\, and rights are fought.” \n\n“Sports in the Middle East are much more than an interesting angle through which to popularize academic themes. As major political and economic forces\, they not only reflect\, but also shape both individuals’ lives and large-scale social processes.” \n\nThe development of modern sports in the Middle East arose in the early twentieth century in urban areas such as Istanbul\, Tehran\, Cairo\, Beirut\, and Damascus. According to Reiche\, different dynamics were apparent\, where “men mainly played football and basketball\, while women were particularly into gymnastics.” In the contemporary era\, one author used digital ethnography in researching how female athletes in the Middle East presented themselves to the public through their social media accounts. Among the similarities with Western female athletes were the use of these platforms for “self-branding and to raise awareness on the sport\,” however\, Middle Eastern women tended to “present themselves in a culturally more appropriate manner\,” he said. \n\nAn audience member asked whether the World Cup might lead to liberalization in Qatar—in the media\, for example. Reiche’s response was\, “Qatar will liberalize\, but on its own terms.” He also shared a “new trend in hosting mega-sporting events\,” that is\, co-hosting them. For example\, the European Football Championship in 2000 co-hosted by Belgium and Holland\, and the 2026 FIFA World Cup co-hosted by the US\, Canada\, and Mexico\, among others. Whether Middle Eastern countries might co-host mega-sporting events given persistent problems in the region\, Reiche suggested a scenario where\, for example\, Qatar could “host a world championship and then give few matches to a country like Lebanon.” \n\nIn conclusion\, Reiche stated\, “sports in the Middle East are much more than an interesting angle through which to popularize academic themes.” As major political and economic forces\, sports “not only reflect\, but also shape both individuals’ lives and large-scale social processes\,” he said. \n\nDanyel Reiche is Associate Professor of Comparative Politics at the American University of Beirut. He graduated with distinction from Leibniz University Hannover and joined AUB in 2008 after working as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Georgetown University in Washington\, DC. His past research focused on energy as well as sport policy and politics\, the latter his recent priority. Reiche published Success and Failure of Countries at the Olympic Games (Routledge\, 2016) and edited\, with Tamir Sorek\, Sport\, Politics and Society in the Middle East (Hurst/Oxford University Press\, 2019). His peer-reviewed articles have been published in area study journals such as International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics and Journal of Energy Policy\, and in broader-oriented journals such as Third World Quarterly and The Middle East Journal. He has written op-eds for international newspapers such as The Washington Post and Spiegel Online and is frequently interviewed and quoted by major media outlets such as Le Monde and The New York Times. Reiche chairs the Political Studies Association’s Sport and Politics Study Group. \n\nArticle by Chaïmaa Benkermi\, Publications Fellow
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/sport-politics-and-society-middle-east/
CATEGORIES:Dialogue Series,Regional Studies
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